The University of Virginia

Date: Aug 21 2004
Major: Engineering Department (This Major's Salary over time)
UVA truly is one of the best schools in the country, and for undergrad, I think it is underrated compared to some of the Ivies. It offers a perfect balance of academics and social life, and the combination of great location, attractive girls, excellent athletic teams, and proximity to large cities (Richmond, DC, etc.) makes it an excellent place to learn, especially for in-staters. As an alum, I feel that there is a certain magic to this school, and it makes all of us anxious to return to C'ville whenever we can. Despite what people think, UVA students and alumni are pretty down-to-earth compared to people from the Ivies and Duke, and UVA is pretty damn hard academically. All of the departments are strong for UNDERGRAD education. I barely pulled a 3.3 in the E-school (engineering), and went to a Top 5 graduate program for chemical engineering…they know how good the school is despite its small size compared to larger schools. All of my grad courses were essentially repeat and I had a 4.0, and writing my thesis was trivial, since all E-school students are required to write a thesis in order to graduate. A guy from Virginia Tech was in my class, and predictably, he failed out during the first year. By the way, UVA kicks VT's ass in ChemE and BME. Sorry Hokies.